Fitness trails totalling 450 kilometres in length, or enough for a jog half way to Beijing, are set to be built in the Southern Capital as part of a new plan aimed at improving facilities for sport, citywide, over the next 3 years.
Yesterday, 17 February, saw a press conference take place, at which was interpreted the contents of the “Nanjing National Fitness Implementation Plan” (南京市全民健身实施计划).
According to the Plan’s goal, public sport takes the fore, while citizens’ fitness awareness and health literacy are to be further improved. In short, Nanjing’s authorities are hoping for sports health to become a lifestyle choice.
Sounds good on paper. Empty words? Perhaps. But it’s difficult to shy away from the stated commitments to build or reconstruct 25 sports parks, add 450 kilometres of fitness trails and build 50 community gyms.
Number crunchers might also be interested in Nanjing’s self-imposed Key Performance Indicators for 2025:
- 44 percent of citizens shall regularly take part in physical exercise
- 4.2 square metres of sporting venues per capita shall be provided
- There shall be not less than 5.3 social-sports instructors per thousand people
During the conference, Zhu Hualin, Deputy Director of Nanjing Sports Bureau, also made reference to optimising the layout of fitness facilities and promoting the eight so-called “sports fitness circles” in Nanjing. Specifically, these are Purple Mountain and Xuanwu Lake, Niushou Shan, Jinniu Lake, Lao Shan, Qixia Shan, Mochou Lake, Shijiu Lake and Gucheng Lake.
According to the Yangtze Evening News, these new efforts will be made possible, in part, by revitalising idle plots of land all over Nanjing. In addition, the opening of large stadiums and gymnasiums, gratis, or for low-cost entry, is to be promoted.
Finally, increased integration of sports and tourism. The concept of “Tourism + Outdoor Sports + Event Experience” is something to look out for.
But what does it all mean in practical terms? For one, sports tourism maps, for us all to enjoy, becoming more healthy and fit, while exploring Nanjing.
